Vancouver has a decent quality of life — if someone else is paying for you to be here.

A new survey by Mercer Canada ranked Terminal City as fifth in the world for quality of living, a standard used to help multinational companies measure compensation for employees going on international assignments.

Luc Lalonde of Mercer said the city’s transit, stable government and restaurants helped contribute to its high ranking.

“One point that I would highlight for Vancouver relative to other Canadian cities is that Vancouver enjoys a milder climate,” Lalonde said.

He said having a branch in a city with a high quality of life is a bonus for a company looking to attract and retain talent.

Meanwhile, the president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities said the expensive cost of living in places like Vancouver is hurting local families.

“The high costs of housing puts home ownership out of reach for an increasing number of moderate and low-income earners,” said Claude Dauphin in an email. “At the same time, affordable housing waitlists continue to grow along and there is an increasing need for subsidized housing and emergency shelters.”

The FCM has been lobbying the federal government to develop a long-term plan to address sustainable, affordable housing in Canada in a campaign called Fixing Canada’s Housing crunch.